January 15, 2013

The infelicities of quarantine

In 2009, as panic struck global health systems confronted with the H1N1 flu epidemic, a familiar strategy was immediately invoked by health officials worldwide: quarantine. In Hong Kong, 300 hotel guests were quarantined in their hotel for at least a week after one guest came down with H1N1.

Such measures are certainly extreme, but they do raise important questions about quarantine. How do we regulate quarantine in practice? How do we prevent this public health measure from squashing civil liberties?

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In 2009, as panic struck global health systems confronted with the H1N1 flu epidemic, a familiar strategy was immediately invoked by health officials worldwide: quarantine. In Hong Kong, 300 hotel guests were quarantined in their hotel for at least a week after one guest came down with H1N1.

Such measures are certainly extreme, but they do raise important questions about quarantine. How do we regulate quarantine in practice? How do we prevent this public health measure from squashing civil liberties?